Billy Ray Cyrus far from Achy Breaky days
Tonya Parker Morrison
December 07, 2005
Billy Ray Cyrus has a problem. His trademark ponytail may be long gone, but critics still have a tendency to write off the country crooner, blessed with swiveling hips and a face just this side of pretty boy, as just another of crossover country's poseur poster boys.
If his recent resume has taught naysayers anything, it's that he isn't going the way of his rump-shaking "Achy Breaky" dance any time soon. He's got a new album out, The Other Side, and enough television gigs to make a Desperate Housewife comeback queen breathless.
"You know, when you start out, they want you to be packaged a certain way, all glossy and commercial," he said in a recent interview. "Then, if you succeed at that and give them what they want, that's all they ever know you for."
True, his looks may be a double-edged sword, but Cyrus has still managed to stay afloat despite the media's ever-ready harpoon. The native of Flatwoods, Ky., was a virtual unknown until Mercury Records bigwigs caught a glimpse of their future star opening for country darling Reba McEntire and signed him in 1990.
That changed when "Achy Breaky Heart" burst onto the charts in 1992. It hit #1 on the country charts and #4 on the pop charts, one of the first country hits to successfully cross over.
Fan clubs cropped up around the world, and young girls donned torn-up jeans and T-shirts and started a dance craze like the country world had never seen.
"One minute, I was living in my car, trying to get from gig to gig, and the next, I was at the Grammys — nominated five times," he said.
"It was like night and day, but I guess in some ways it came too fast. When you go through that, it can mess with your heart and mess with your mind. Unfortunately, you never realize what's going on until you start spiraling down that hill out of control."
After being shut out at the Grammys in 1993, Cyrus put out a string of releases that failed to ignite the same kind of fires in record stores that Some Gave All had.
The sting he felt when 1994's Storm in the Heartland tanked was wearing off by 1996, however, when Cyrus decided to tempt fate by putting out a stripped-down version of himself with Trail of Tears. Fans respected his choice to lose the gloss and get back to basics, and rewarded him with a TNN/Music City News Single of the Year award.
While tabloids continuously touted every single sliver of turmoil in the performer's personal life, Cyrus trudged through the gossip and tried to lose himself in his music. He kept writing and playing guitar from his 500-acre secluded estate south of Nashville, trying desperately to hold it all together and tap into whatever creative stores he still had left.
Making the most of his downtime, Cyrus made a shrewd move onto the small screen in 2001 as PAX TV's Dr. Clint Cassidy in DOC. He plays a Montana native with small town values who follows the love of his life to New York City. Charming the stilettos off the patients at Manhattan HMO, he has a much tougher time getting the staff to see medicine through his country-fied eyes.
During his time on the show, he's become a staple of the tube, showing up everywhere from country music specials to The Nanny and The Loveboat.
He's not done singing and performing, but the father of six is helping usher another one of his family members into Tinseltown. Though he tried his hand at musical theater in 2005 with Annie Get Your Gun in Toronto, these days he's more interested in helping daughter Miley with her live-action Disney comedy, "Hannah Montana." The show centers around a girl who has a secret identity - the pop star title character. She loves some of the perks, but needs a little downtime from the craziness and chaos that is stardom.
Filming for the 2006 series, which also stars big daddy Cyrus, began this past fall.
So how does Papa Cyrus manage to keep so many balls in the air at one time? With a smile on his face.
"It hasn't been an easy ride, but I've learned a lot during the past decade," he said. "I'm happier now, both at home and with my music."
He relies heavily on not just his family, but his faith. Cyrus doesn't stop at recording gospel-tinged songs like "Face of God," "Did I Forget to Pray?" and "Amazing Grace" from his latest release. He even has a prayer board on his website (www.billyraycyrus.com) for fan club members.
The hard-working everyman said he wants to spread the word as far as he can, through his songs or through his deeds and the way he lives his life.
He has the Billy Ray Cyrus Foundation, which takes applications via an address on his website, Toys for Tots and any other worthy cause he takes an interest in, including raising almost $3,000 with an auction for the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.
"God has blessed me with a lot of strength and ambition, and I think I owe it to him to use everything I've got 100 percent."
If his recent resume has taught naysayers anything, it's that he isn't going the way of his rump-shaking "Achy Breaky" dance any time soon. He's got a new album out, The Other Side, and enough television gigs to make a Desperate Housewife comeback queen breathless.
"You know, when you start out, they want you to be packaged a certain way, all glossy and commercial," he said in a recent interview. "Then, if you succeed at that and give them what they want, that's all they ever know you for."
True, his looks may be a double-edged sword, but Cyrus has still managed to stay afloat despite the media's ever-ready harpoon. The native of Flatwoods, Ky., was a virtual unknown until Mercury Records bigwigs caught a glimpse of their future star opening for country darling Reba McEntire and signed him in 1990.
That changed when "Achy Breaky Heart" burst onto the charts in 1992. It hit #1 on the country charts and #4 on the pop charts, one of the first country hits to successfully cross over.
Fan clubs cropped up around the world, and young girls donned torn-up jeans and T-shirts and started a dance craze like the country world had never seen.
"One minute, I was living in my car, trying to get from gig to gig, and the next, I was at the Grammys — nominated five times," he said.
"It was like night and day, but I guess in some ways it came too fast. When you go through that, it can mess with your heart and mess with your mind. Unfortunately, you never realize what's going on until you start spiraling down that hill out of control."
After being shut out at the Grammys in 1993, Cyrus put out a string of releases that failed to ignite the same kind of fires in record stores that Some Gave All had.
The sting he felt when 1994's Storm in the Heartland tanked was wearing off by 1996, however, when Cyrus decided to tempt fate by putting out a stripped-down version of himself with Trail of Tears. Fans respected his choice to lose the gloss and get back to basics, and rewarded him with a TNN/Music City News Single of the Year award.
While tabloids continuously touted every single sliver of turmoil in the performer's personal life, Cyrus trudged through the gossip and tried to lose himself in his music. He kept writing and playing guitar from his 500-acre secluded estate south of Nashville, trying desperately to hold it all together and tap into whatever creative stores he still had left.
Making the most of his downtime, Cyrus made a shrewd move onto the small screen in 2001 as PAX TV's Dr. Clint Cassidy in DOC. He plays a Montana native with small town values who follows the love of his life to New York City. Charming the stilettos off the patients at Manhattan HMO, he has a much tougher time getting the staff to see medicine through his country-fied eyes.
During his time on the show, he's become a staple of the tube, showing up everywhere from country music specials to The Nanny and The Loveboat.
He's not done singing and performing, but the father of six is helping usher another one of his family members into Tinseltown. Though he tried his hand at musical theater in 2005 with Annie Get Your Gun in Toronto, these days he's more interested in helping daughter Miley with her live-action Disney comedy, "Hannah Montana." The show centers around a girl who has a secret identity - the pop star title character. She loves some of the perks, but needs a little downtime from the craziness and chaos that is stardom.
Filming for the 2006 series, which also stars big daddy Cyrus, began this past fall.
So how does Papa Cyrus manage to keep so many balls in the air at one time? With a smile on his face.
"It hasn't been an easy ride, but I've learned a lot during the past decade," he said. "I'm happier now, both at home and with my music."
He relies heavily on not just his family, but his faith. Cyrus doesn't stop at recording gospel-tinged songs like "Face of God," "Did I Forget to Pray?" and "Amazing Grace" from his latest release. He even has a prayer board on his website (www.billyraycyrus.com) for fan club members.
The hard-working everyman said he wants to spread the word as far as he can, through his songs or through his deeds and the way he lives his life.
He has the Billy Ray Cyrus Foundation, which takes applications via an address on his website, Toys for Tots and any other worthy cause he takes an interest in, including raising almost $3,000 with an auction for the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.
"God has blessed me with a lot of strength and ambition, and I think I owe it to him to use everything I've got 100 percent."
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